You might picture places of historical importance, or items of value which have existed for centuries, or traditions passed down the generations. To have a heritage means to have a story.
More specifically, a history. Considering the heritage of a place, a person, or an object encourages inquisitiveness about its journey. We realise that there are lessons to be learned from the past, and there is no shortage of stories to tell.
However, ‘heritage’ feels like something more than just ‘history’. History speaks of the past, whereas a heritage is something that, by definition, has endured, remaining visible in the modern day.
Indeed, when we talk about heritage brands, you can look to the likes of Hermès, Loewe, and Burberry to see how preserving a heritage relies on a brand’s ability to transform through the generations, always remaining contemporary. Cadbury’s was established in Birmingham in 1824, Twinings began selling tea in 1706, and the Cambridge University Press dates back to 1534.
What is it about these specific brands which has ensured their continuance? Surely it is their acknowledgement that your history is not enough; your brand has to continually evolve and remain relevant to your audience, whilst simultaneously honouring your roots.
Did you know that CloudCloth has a little heritage of its own? It was our founders persitance in sourcing a cloth that was able to cleanse highly sensitive skin without irritating it that led to the discovery of CloudCloth. Whilst suffering from a reactive form of urticaria, resulting in raised red welts on her skin, her usual granular exfoliants were suddenly out of the question and so quickly turned to an alternative of light muslin fabric to exfoliate. Soon after attempts were made to see if any of the mills still operating in the UK were producing muslin, our founder had decided she might like to produce and sell them to local shops after taking a career break to look after her youngest son. After being turned away from the handful of factories she had found, there was one mill in particular that eventually agreed to a meeting and after a few discussions with the mill owner, a few options were presented. There was this one fabric in particular which seemed to offer the perfect solution; it was a very soft, cloud-like fabric, almost like cotton wool, and the back of the cloth was woven like muslin. The mill owner explained that this cloth had been used in skincare many years ago, and that long before disposable wipes exploded onto the market women would keep this same cloth in small circular tins, usually impregnated with a cleansing solution, for quick and easy make-up removal. This was certainly a welcome discovery, the ‘beauty tech’ of yesteryear. Our founder was given some samples to take home and soon found she couldn’t live without it, and it totally replaced the cotton wool rounds she had previously been using and that’s how CloudCloth was born.
CloudCloth combines something from the past, with the relevancy of modern sensibilities and we believe heritage is at its best when it commemorates the past, whilst existing in the present, and welcoming the future.
heritage (noun): features belonging to the culture of a particular society, such as traditions, languages, or buildings, that were created in the past and still have historical importance.